


The Very Best

by Trainer_Amy



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pokemon: Magikarp Jump (Video Game)
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-17
Updated: 2019-07-19
Packaged: 2020-03-07 00:02:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 15,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18861640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trainer_Amy/pseuds/Trainer_Amy
Summary: After losing all her Pokemon to a battle with her rival, Trainer Perry tries a fresh start as a Magikarp Jump competitor... and gets more invested than she originally thought she would.





	1. The End

Perry gritted her teeth, Pokeball clutched tightly in her hand. Across the stadium, the Alakazam stood over the fallen form of her Raichu, eyes glowing with cold strategy. Perry raised the ball, calling the Raichu back, though if he was as badly beaten as her other Pokemon it was a pointless gesture.

“Just forfeit, and keep your last remaining Pokemon,” hissed a trainer behind her. Perry had taken him down with only two of her team.

“You wish,” she snapped back, hand moving to the last Pokeball strapped to her belt. She had worked so hard, and lost so much, to get to this point. She had so much more to lose if she forfeited.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then locked eyes with her rival.

“Go, Fury! Hyper Beam!”

“Perry!”

The audience screaming her name from the stands blended into a gentle call from outside her bedroom door. Perry withdrew from the memory, still staring at the framed picture on her bedside table. A younger Perry stared back at her, a mischievous Gyarados about to spray her with a mouthful of water.

“Perry,” came the call again, and then a sigh, and footsteps padding away softly.

It had been several weeks since the tournament. Perry had faithfully ignored the lingering press, messages from friends and family, and the calls from the PokeCentre asking if she was ready to say goodbye to her Pokemon yet. Life support only works for so long, after all.

Perry had tried to respond, kind of, but everything felt so heavy and large. She kept thinking back to that last battle, analyzing the play-by-plays and trying to figure out where she went wrong. And she felt guilty, above all. Guilty for the battle, guilty for ignoring people trying to support her, and guilty that she felt too dead inside to mourn.

A scuttling from the corner of the room made her turn her head. The Pokemon turned to look at her too, and then hurried under her bed.

“Mom,” Perry called, “Diglett got out of the garden again.”

“Oh, that’s a shame. I can put it back if you unlock your door.”

Perry closed her eyes, putting her face into her pillow. The scuffling continued, and she became worried that the mole Pokemon looking for grubs under her bed would eat through her notes and memory box. With a heave, she got out of bed and unlocked the door.

Her mother was ready with the Pokeball, and scooped up the intruder before it got out the door. And then she turned to Perry.

“I packed you a bag. You can’t live like this anymore, hun. You’re going to Hoppy Town to stay with your cousin Roddy. There’ll be Pokemon there! And you can be outside.”

Her weird cousin Roddy? Perry flopped back down onto the bed, turning her back to her mom.

They stayed like this for a while. Right before closing the door, Perry’s mom said, “I would have thought you of all people knows how to keep fighting.”

Perry froze for a moment. And then she pushed the neatly-packed bag away. She had never unpacked her trainer bag, after all.


	2. The Ranch

Roddy Tackle’s ranch was on the edge of town. They had left the highway ages ago, and driven through mostly sparse grassland with obscure signs and Tauros ranches. Perry didn’t actually remember what Pokemon Roddy raised. Goldeen or something, she thought. She imagined ponds of Psyduck and Starmie free-roaming a wide field.

“Ah, here we are.” As they turned off the highway, Perry wondered how her mother even spotted the run-down and crooked sign hanging next to the arch. They almost scraped the car coaxing it through the overgrown hedges and up the driveway to the farmhouse. Despite herself, Perry peered over, and was a little disappointed: there were no free-roaming Pokemon. All she could see were a few reedy ponds behind the fences. In the distance, down the hill, a few buildings clustered into a small town.

Her cousin Roddy approached as they parked, a short and heavyset man with a pathetic attempt at a beard scratching his face. He had a life vest on, a fishing rod in a case slung over his shoulder, and, to her utter embarrassment, the official hat of the league tournament she had just lost.

“He’s being supportive,” her mother offered, also flinching at the getup.

What Roddy wore was nothing in comparison to the old man next to him. Atop a shaggy white mane, the man wore a fishing hat with sunglasses, and below an equally shaggy white beard, an Alolan-style shirt with a Pokeball pattern and horrifically short white shorts with sandals. It looked like he was preparing for a day at the beach more than the ranch.

As they got out of the car, Roddy enveloped her in a bear hug. “Hey, cuz. I’m glad you’re gonna stay here for a while. It’ll do you some good.”

“Hello, welcome to Hoppy Town! The name is Karp. Everyone calls me Mayor Karp, though.” The beach-man stuck out his hand for a shake and Perry took it reluctantly. He eyed the empty Pokeballs strapped to her backpack. “Oh, are you a trainer?”

Perry shrugged. “I was.”

Karp’s face lit up. “I used to be, too! Of the greatest Pokemon of them all – Magikarp!”

She gave him a skeptical look.

“Well sure, it has a reputation for being weak and useless. Yet it just keeps on jumping! Ya gotta admire that, don’t you think? That’s why we all love this plucky little Pokemon around here!”

“You all?”

“Here in these parts, folks love to compete to see whose Magikarp can jump higher. But we haven’t had a league champion come out of our town in a long while.” He looked at her expectantly. “Since you were a Pokemon trainer and all, I bet you could raise a fine Magikarp.”

“Oh, I’m just here to help my cousin Roddy for a while.”

“That’s great! He breeds Magikarp and can get you started.” Mayor Karp practically leapt over to the farmhouse wall, grabbing one of the shabby Old Rods leaning against it.

Roddy chuckled. “Hold on, Mayor. I’m sure Perry would be a great ‘Karp trainer, but let’s get you set up first. I have a room cleaned out for you.”

The house was a PokeManiac’s dream. The main floor of the house was dominated by an enormous wall calendar, marked with stickers of Pokemon eggs in different colours, and notes like “incubation 55 Sporty”. Near the calendar, a few small eggs wiggled occasionally in tanks, and what appeared to be tiny skinny Magikarp darted around a silk-plant jungle. Berry plants growing in pots dominated every spare corner of the room, except for a curtain pulled back next to a small bed. “Her” room, technically the attic, had a large tank along one wall, a bowl of Oran berries, and a bed with Magikarp-themed sheets and blankets.

“It seems like you really like Pokemon here!” her mother remarked. Perry’s version of the comment would have contained a lot more sarcasm.

Perry set her pack down on the bed, eyeing the empty tank. She unclipped Fury’s old Pokeball from her pack, setting it gently next to the tank. When Fury was a Magikarp, she would have been in heaven here.

“So, uh, no pressure.” Roddy rubbed the back of his head bashfully. “But I set up a tank there if you wanted to raise a Magikarp, and we could start you out with one of the easy ones.”

“I…” Perry looked helplessly at her mother. And then she sighed. She would never get her team back, but at least she could make someone happy. “Okay.”

They went down to the ponds, grabbing an Old Rod on the way, her mother beaming like a Sunflora the whole time. A couple of other people were milling around, including a kid her age encouraging a white-patterned Magikarp to flop out of its pond. Two young children holding Old Rods ran screaming, smiles plastered onto their faces, down the boardwalk, and Mayor Karp grabbed them before they fell into one of the ponds.

“Whoa, now, young’uns. You’d be wanting the beginner ponds. Just follow us.”

Right down at the end of the boardwalk was a pond the size of a small pool, with kid-sized chairs all around it. The two young kids rushed over, immediately throwing their rods in while giggling.

“Now watch how they do it,” Mayor Karp whispered to her. Perry snorted quietly. She had beaten kids like these in battles on the first route of her journey.

Within seconds, one of the kids screamed, “I got one!” and yanked hard on the rod. Sure enough, a small Magikarp came flying out of the pond and hit the tiles of the deck. The kids high-fived, and then pushed the pathetic thing back into the water.

“Now you try.” Roddy nodded at one of the chairs.

“You can’t be serious.”

“No, go on. Those kids were born in Hoppy Town. They’ve been around the ‘Karp their whole lives.”

Perry sat cross-legged on the deck with a sigh, and bobbed her fishing line into the water. She sat straight and tall, but slowly slouched down as it became clear there was nothing biting.

“This is stupid,” she muttered.

Suddenly, she felt a bite on her line. She gave a tug and saw a Magikarp’s face sticking out of the surface of the pond.

“Quick, give me a Pokemon!” she yelled.

“Uh, for what?” Roddy asked.

“Battling it?!”

“Oh, no, sorry, we don’t do that here. Basically, ya fish it, it’s yours. You got to show it who’s boss.”

That couldn’t be too hard. Perry locked eyes with the fish, channeling the energy she used when she was facing a gym leader, and looking at the stupid bug-eyed flopper with as much malice as she could muster. The Magikarp pulled back on the line. Still not breaking eye contact, she yoinked – and the Magikarp came flying out of the water.

“I did it!”

“Good job, sweetie!” Her mom gave her a quick side hug.

Mayor Karp knelt down, inspecting the Magikarp as it lay flopping. “That’s a standard-pattern with some individuality,” he remarked. “Good starter ‘Karp, for sure.”

Roddy passed her a Pokeball, and she tapped it against the fish’s side, feeling the Pokeball click without shaking once.

With the adrenaline fading, Perry looked at the ball in her hand, and then tucked it in her pocket.

Her mom gave her another hug. “You’re going to settle in so well, Perry. Just now, I saw a spark of the old you in your eyes. I’ll be back to visit really soon, and call me if you want to talk.”

She watched her mom drive off from her room’s window, overlooking the driveway and ponds, and, if she craned her head, the far-off Hoppy Town and its bustling population. She put her new Pokemon’s ball next to the large tank, sighing as her hand brushed over Fury’s. She picked up the old ball, tucked it against her, and lay uneasily on her bed as sleep took its hold.


	3. Fury

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter-specific cws: animal (Pokemon) abuse/injuries

The path to Mount Moon, curving through Rocky Mountains, was a long but pleasurable hike. There were plenty of trainers helping each other out on the way - and ready for a quick battle. Perry was one of these, a proud grin stretching across her face as she rubbed her Pikachu on the head. She had been on her journey for six months, and her Pokemon, Embers the Charmander and Strike the Pikachu, were only growing stronger.

The path plateaued by a stream, Poliwag splashing playfully and Spearows chasing Krabby by the shorebanks. Perry ignored them - none of those Pokemon would have enough sheer power to be competitive, no matter how cute they seemed now. She settled herself on the shorebank, carefully moving Embers's tail away from her trainer pack.

There were other people settled along the bank, some with Pokemon, and Perry watched as a man in a business suit, out of place amid the shorts and sandals, went up to each at a time, spoke quietly, and then moved away. Perry was both intensely curious and wary.

"Hello," he greeted her softly, crouching down in the sand. Instantly, Strike stiffened and sparked, and the man stopped mid-reach for her head.

"Ouch! Hey, be nice, Strike. What can I do for ya?"

"I saw you're raising some fine Pokemon here, and I was wondering if you'd be interested in getting another." He pulled a Pokeball from his pocket. "Grows up to be one of the strongest Pokemon there is."

Perry's eyes lit up.

"Magikarp! Best in Kanto, only 500P." He flashed a winning smile.

Perry sagged, mouth pulled into a frown. 500P was practically all her money. A Gyarados could be a good addition to her team, but...

"Sorry, I just don't have the money," she sighed.

"Ah, well, that's a shame. I -- AGH!"

Strike had leapt for the man's chest with a growl. Perry jumped to her feet and grabbed her, but not before catching a flash of red under the stranger's jacket.

"Control that rat, will you!" the man yelled over his shoulder, adjusting his suit as he trotted away.

"Strike, what's gotten into you?"

"Pi!"

"You... you felt weird about that guy too, huh?"

Strike nodded, and Perry rested a hand on her back. "Then I guess we're just gonna have to... investigate!"

They followed subtly from a distance as the figure in black seemed to disappear around the riverbank. His footsteps told the story, though, heading into the weeds and a hidden tunnel.

"Tch, I can't believe you haven't sold a single one today." A nasally voice echoed through the passageway as Perry crept down.

"Hey, it's harder than it looks. People just don't want this junk Pokemon."

The tunnel widened out, and Perry gasped at the scene before her. The river flowed shallowly into the tunnel, flowing over a few Magikarp caught in a suspended net. The rest of the Magikarp in the net were above the water's surface, desperately pushing down and through their fellow Pokemon for a chance at the water. Some had long scrapes and gashes on their sides, from net chafing and the sharp fins of the others. It was horrific. Nearby, two men in black with a large red R on their shirts tossed jibes back and forth.

"This isn't right. We have to do something," Perry whispered to her Pokemon. Embers nodded seriously and Strike let out a few ready sparks.

The plan they made was simple but stuck to their strengths. Strike jumped out from behind the rocks, dashing towards the grunts.

"AGH - that rat again!"

"Jeez, you can't handle a Pikachu? Ekans, go!"

While they were distracted, Embers and Perry snuck over to the net. "Okay, Embers. Tell them to move to the other side of the net so I can cut a hole over here."

"Cha!"

Embers started poking at the Magikarp, whispering urgently in poke-speech, but they weren't listening. They were still desperately flailing, struggling to breathe. Behind them, the grunts were keeping Strike on her toes with an Ekans and a Koffing - Perry wasn't sure how long she could keep it up.

Perry grunted in frustration, pulling out her prize from Pewter's gym. "Listen to me!"

The light gleamed off the Boulder Badge in a truly impressive prism, showering the Magikarp with Perry's undiluted will.

They continued to splash.

Except one. Perry saw intelligence in its eyes as they swiveled to face her, mouth gaping from lack of oxygen but gaze locked on her.

"Okay, listen. You have to get the other Magikarp to swim in one direction so I can cut the net and set you free."

The Magikarp gave a slight nod, and then let out an unearthly cry. Instantly, the other Magikarp stilled. On the leader's mark, they started swimming downwards, pulling the net with them.

"Yeah, you almost got that stinker!" yelled one of the grunts as his Koffing tackled Strike.

"Hey, you bullies!" Perry stood triumphant by the net, holding her pocket knife in her hand. "Go, Magikarps!"

A wave of orange washed over the two grunts as the Magikarp jumped out of the river. Encouraged by the onslaught, Embers jumped into the fray, and he and Strike managed to knock out the grunts' Pokemon. Knowing they were outnumbered, the two made a dash for it, yelling abuse at the Magikarp the whole time.

"Yeah! Good job guys!" As Perry high-fived her Pokemon, the Magikarp flopped back into the river, making their way quickly back to the wild. Perry watched them go, happy to know she helped.

Finally, there was only one Magikarp left. It gazed at her with intelligent eyes.

"Huh? Oh, you're the leader, aren't you? What those guys did to you was awful, and I swear we're gonna make 'em pay. Listen: come with me, and when we get stronger, you WILL show them your fury."


	4. The Friend League, Part 1

For the next few days, Perry developed a routine. Finding it raw and uncomfortable to work directly with the Pokemon, she instead volunteered to help the maintenance team. Every morning she prepared bowls of berries precisely combined for each Magikarp's diet. Every afternoon she took in the used Old Rods and carefully untangled and restrung their lines. It was rote work and it let her turn her mind off for a bit.

On the fifth day, Roddy approached her, biting his lip and scratching the back of his head. “Hey, Perry. I notice you didn't greet your Magikarp yet.”

She shrugged.

“I bet it would like that tank better than a cramped Pokeball, hey?”

She picked up the ball, giving it a squeeze. She could never replace her old team, and wouldn't be able to fight competitively: after the horrific defeat, outraged cries had called for the end of trainer-trainer leagues, and she was the unwilling face of that. But Roddy was right that the Magikarp deserved better than she was giving it.

With a flash of red light that lit up Roddy's grin, she released Magikarp into the tank. It immediately swam into the glass, bumped off, and gasped stupidly at her from the water.

“That's more like it! Remember there's Oran berries on the desk, and if you want to try a hand at a bioactive tank I can give you a few plants to get started --” Roddy cut himself off when he saw the apathetic look in Perry's eyes. “Orrrr we could just start with making friends.”

Perry nodded, and Roddy left whistling a jaunty fishing tune. She dumped the bowl of Oran berries into the tank and settled down for bed.

*

At the crack of dawn, Perry opened her eyes and let out a scream. The Magikarp - her Magikarp - had its tail hanging out of the tank, face pushed uncomfortably against the glass as it nibbled on the last Oran berry. It had grown to huge proportions.

Roddy came running at her scream, fishing rod held out like a weapon. When he saw her pointing at the overgrown fish, he gave a chuckle.

“What, did you give it the whole bowl of Oran berries at once?” When he saw her sheepish expression, he stifled his smile. “It's okay. Beginner's mistake, don't worry. We'll just have to get you set up at a pond, and it would be a good idea to start training your Magikarp.”

Well, Perry wouldn't be able to get back to sleep with that thing staring at her. She grabbed instinctively for a Pokeball at her belt, then remembered it was on the desk. Nodding to her cousin, she withdrew the Magikarp with a flash of red. 

Training was normal. Training was routine. Training was something Perry could handle. She clipped Magikarp's Pokeball to her belt, feeling the smallest twinge of guilt for putting it where Fury's used to be, and headed into the fields beyond the ranch where she had seen the other people - trainers? - bring their Magikarp.

The fields were humming with the content sounds of Weedle and Caterpie, with the occasional Pidgey peeping from the surrounding trees. The tall grass beckoned her. When she had trained Fury as a Magikarp, Perry got her to watch her other Pokemon fight. At this point, though, she didn't have any Pokemon.

Perry rolled up her sleeves. At this point she was dedicated.

The Pokemon in the tall grass were elusive, and it took a fair bit of sneaking before Perry found a worthy opponent. And then, quietly as she could, she released Magikarp.

"Shh. Watch what I do."

Perry jumped up, taking the buff Pokemon by surprise and making it drop its berry with a shriek. It immediately rotated, faced her, and beat its skinny arms against its chest.

"Watch how I defend against this Mankey!" As the pig monkey Pokemon charged at her, enraged at its interrupted snack, Perry weaved around its punches, blocking with her arms where it became too fast. Soon it relented, panting as it recovered.

"And now - I attack!" Perry lunged forward, grabbing the Mankey by the ankle and whirling it above her head. She caught a couple of blows to her shoulders before hurling it as far as she could. The Mankey fled.

"Did you get that, Magikarp?" Chest heaving, she turned to her fish. It had been watching the horizon in the wrong direction.

She withdrew it. "Okay, this isn't working. Let's get you in the new pond and see if Roddy has any tips."

Roddy, trowel in hand and lifejacket equipped, was landscaping a pond when she found him. Perry peered in and saw a bright, sunny, shallow pond lined with sea grasses. He looked up as she approached with her Pokeball in hand, and wiped the sweat off his forehead (smearing dirt across his head in the process).

"Heya, cuz! This is gonna be your new pond. Did you try any training?"

"Yep."

"Awesome! Jump Counter or Sandbag Slam?"

"What? I, uh - Mankey?"

"You fought a wild Pokemon?! Is your Magikarp okay?!"

"Oh - yeah. Magikarp didn't fight."

"Magikarp didn't --? Okay, look. We have two beginner training courses behind the farmhouse. Just stick with those next, okay?"

Perry turned to look behind the farmhouse. Indeed, the kid her age from earlier was encouraging his Magikarp to slam into a sandbag. 

Perry took up a post at the Jump Counter station and sent out Magikarp. The other kid waved, picked up his Magikarp, and brought it over.

“Heya, I’m Todd!” He had a distinct country look, jeans slung loosely over his hips and arms tanned only on the topside. He offered a broad hand in a shake that looked decidedly fishy.

“Perry. What’s wrong with your Magikarp?” As he came closer, she could see his Magikarp looked like it had its ribs on the outside.

He laughed. “Just a Skelly pattern! Karson started out looking just like yours, and then the pattern got clearer as it grew up. I’m trying to research all the Magikarp patterns! What’s your goal?”

Perry sighed. “I’m not sure yet. Mayor Karp thinks I should take on the jump leagues.”

Todd’s eyes bulged. “If Mayor Karp thinks you should, then it’s for sure! Look, your Magikarp is doing great already!”

Perry turned. Her Magikarp was panting with effort, the counter above it sporting the number 129. She stared at it in confusion.

“Listen,” said Todd, “do you want to be rivals? I just started out here, too, and --”

“I don’t need a rival,” Perry replied coldly. The memory was still fresh in her mind, and she gripped the Pokeball in her hand, remembering the cold eyes of the Alakazam as it --

“Well, uh, okay.” Todd seemed a little dejected. “Friends, then?”

Perry closed her eyes. “I guess I can do friends.”

“Ye-eah!” Todd punched the air, his Magikarp winking. This was going to get old quick. She locked eyes with her Magikarp, and it gave her a sympathetic look that reminded her distinctly of Fury.

After the training, Perry took Magikarp down to its new pond. The sun was setting and it wouldn’t be able to fit in the tank in her room anymore, but she still felt nervous about leaving it alone overnight. With a sigh, she sat herself down on the grass and watched Magikarp swim around and then come back up to the surface.

“I don’t have more berries for you,” she told it. “Fury never really ate berries. I could just release her into a stream or something and she’d find food for herself.” She watched Magikarp as it dived down, nibbled a bit on the sea grass, and came back up to the surface, gazing at her with sad eyes.

“Okay, fine, but just one. You’re too big as it is.” She tossed in an Oran berry, and Magikarp chomped it down happily. Her heart ached for her old Pokemon as she drifted to sleep with the stars overhead.


	5. The Friend League, Part 2

“Hey Perry, wake up!” Todd shook her awake, and she belatedly noticed the trumpet fanfare playing in the distance. She was groggy, and freezing on the side of her body that had been against the ground, but that was the best sleep she had had in ages.

“What do you want, Todd?”

“It’s the Friend League today! We’re gonna compete, right?”

“I wasn’t --” Todd gave her a puppy-dog look. “I guess?”

“That’s great, Perry! Come on, grab your Magikarp and let’s go before it’s too late!”

He ran ahead of her, Karson under his arm like a football and apparently loving it. Perry took the time to withdraw Magikarp into its ball before following him into the fields where she had taken on the Mankey. The fields were transformed, the grass trampled by picnic blankets and a dark-skinned guy in a bright orange suit - patterned with Magikarp, of course - with a karaoke machine mic in one hand. Contestants with Magikarp, mostly kids, all with smaller Magikarp than hers, stood in a line, Todd standing proud with Karson out in front of him. Perry stood next to him and released Magikarp into her own arms.

“It’s time for the Friend League! Narrated by your very favourite, Flop Hoppington.” The man in the orange suit gave a wink that sent the moms on the grass into a tizzy. “We have a great line-up of first-time jumpers today - give them a hand!” The audience let out a smatter of applause. “First up, we’ll have Chris and Hannah!”

Two kids, each slightly younger than Perry had been when she had started her journey, faced each other on a cleared patch of grass. Both threw their Magikarp on the ground, looked each other directly in the eyes, and yelled, “Magikarp, jump!”

Their Magikarp flopped about four feet in the air. Hannah’s went slightly higher.

“And the winner for this round is Hannah! Congratulations!”

The next few contests went on similarly. The only exception was Karson, who actually hit the other Magikarp on the way up. “Wow, what a jump! That one blew Youssef’s Magikarp right out of the water!”

“And finally, we have Tina and…”

“Perry,” Todd offered.

“Perry! Now looking at this Magikarp’s discipline, I’m not sure if it’s ready for the big leagues yet.”

“Hey, Magikarp!” Perry hissed. “Focus!” Its eyes snapped from the horizon to its rival, a standard pattern Magikarp with eyes that stared in two different directions.

“Magikarp, jump!”

“Magikarp… jump?”

On her cue, Perry’s Magikarp pushed off the ground and made a flying leap into the air, clearing her rival’s jump by a couple of feet.

“Perry is the winner! Wow, your favourite Flop can be wrong sometimes, I guess. Round two starts now - Hannah vs. Todd and Paula vs. Perry.”

Hannah and Todd stared each other down before throwing their Magikarp onto the grass. Karson narrowed its eyes at its rival. When the call came, the two Magikarp jumped; but Karson jumped diagonally, knocking into Hannah’s Magikarp and sending it flying horizontal. With a wiggle, it got back on track, clearing the last two feet needed.

“Brutal, but that’s the way it’s played in the big leagues! Todd’s Magikarp is the winner!”

Paula turned out to be a wiry kid of maybe 12, with a hardness to her that made Perry hesitate. In the primaries, her Magikarp had cleared the rival’s two-foot jump easily, but Perry wasn’t sure if that was the full extent of its abilities.

“Okay, Magikarp,” Perry whispered to her Pokemon, “when you jump, make sure you use your tail to give you an extra boost.”

“Magikarp, jump!” the two trainers yelled in unison. Perry’s Magikarp gave an extra flop of its tail as it launched itself into the air, and its head just cleared its competitor’s. As they came down, they left visible dents in the grass.

“Wow, a photo finish! And the winner is…” A Magikarp leapt out of the dents, and sailed into Perry’s arms. “Perry’s Magikarp! That means the final round will be Todd vs. Perry! We’ll take a lunch break and meet back here in an hour.”

Todd came over, giving Karson a hug. “Good job… rival.”

“Friend,” Perry corrected.

“Ha! I’m your friend now! Gotcha!”

Perry rolled her eyes. “Magikarp and I are going to get some last minute training in before the competition. You go kiss your Magikarp’s lips or whatever.”

Todd made smoochy faces as the two walked further into the tall grass and into a shady clearing in the woods. Perry set Magikarp down and knelt by it.

“Okay, so we know Todd has some special strategy where he just hits the other Magikarp on the way up. If he’s gonna play dirty, we’re going to have to work on some strategy. Remember what we did earlier, with attack and defense.” Magikarp gazed at her blankly. Right. She couldn’t help but think that Fury had light-years of attention span compared to this new fish, which was trying to eat a grub off the ground. New strategy.

“Hey Magikarp. Want a… berry?”

Its eyes snapped up immediately.

They trained like this until the trumpet fanfare from the karaoke machine sounded again, and then made their way confidently to the makeshift stadium. Todd and Karson seemed rested up, and had confident smirks on their faces (an impressive feat for a Magikarp).

“The last competition of the Friend League! Remember, at stake are enough plants from the Forest Lagoon line from KarpDeco for your own themed pond, as well as a special decoration surprise. Todd and Perry, only one of you will be able to claim this prize. Are - you - ready - to - jump?”

The crowd went wild.

With a nervous gulp, Perry set down her Magikarp. If it were Fury - but, she reminded herself, Fury was gone. It was never going to be Fury again. She could only trust in herself and this stupid, fat Magikarp, who was winning her affection by the minute.

“Ready, folks? Here it comes!”

“Just like we practiced, Magikarp!” Perry yelled.

“Magikarp, jump!”

With an impressive leap, both Magikarp left the ground. As predicted, Karson headed at an angle, straight for Magikarp.

“Now, Magikarp! Defend!”

Magikarp tensed its body, fins extended out to the side, and grabbed onto Karson as the two collided.

“Here we go! Attack!”

Magikarp flicked its tail down as it let go of Karson, launching itself into the air as it threw Karson down towards the ground. Karson hit the grass with a thud, and Perry caught Magikarp in midair, swinging it around. “Yes! We did it! You did awesome, Magikarp!”

Todd picked up a dazed Karson and shook Perry’s hand with a smile. “Well done, friend.”

Perry hesitated. “Rival?”

Todd grinned. “Rival.”

Perry felt a little claustrophobic as a number of wellwishers gathered around her. Mayor Karp gave her a slap on the back, proclaiming his vision for her future: all eight leagues. A small child ran up from the picnic blankets, petting her Magikarp with excitement. “Gee whiz! I want to raise a Magikarp just like yours someday!” Flop Hoppington handed her a giftcard with KarpDeco stylishly emblazoned on it and a faceted green-yellow orb. She turned the latter over and gazed at it.

“It’s a light ball,” Flop said proudly. “Certain wild Pokemon are attracted to it, and if you put it near your pond, they’ll help you out. All yours.”

She was still on a victory high when it all went wrong.


	6. Strike

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter-specific cws: battle-inflicted Pokemon injuries

“Okay, guys, listen up.” Perry sat in a circle with her four Pokemon. Admittedly, Embers was taking up most of the circle, still getting used to his new larger and redder form. Fury watched from a pond nearby, her eyes laser-beamed on her trainer. Strike was hopping from foot to foot with excitement, and Balthazar was paying attention if he was awake. It was hard to tell with Abra.

“Strike, you did a really good job against Misty, but we had the type advantage there. Let’s not forget what happened with Brock.” She flinched at the memory of the Onix crushing her two Pokemon with Rock Throw. “Just like we tied that Onix up with Agility, we’re going to have to rely on strategy. Fury and Balthazar, you’re doing a great job learning until you evolve.”

“Hey, Perry! Still only have four Pokemon, I see.”

Perry groaned. Coming towards her from the Pokemon Centre was her spiky-haired rival, the shaggy mane slicked back pathetically and collar popped up on his jacket. He was carrying a Pokeball in one hand and the other arm slung casually through his backpack.

“Shut up, Zed. At least Embers evolved.”

“Aw, what are you going to do? Splash at me?” He stuck out his tongue at her. “You going to challenge the gym with that team?”

“Yep, we’re just working on strategy now. Where are Squirtle and Bellsprout? They’re usually right on your heels.”

“They’re in the PC. Strategy’s nothing if you don’t have the type advantage!” He held out his Pokeball. “Check this out! Go, Diglett!”

An unfamiliar Pokemon emerged from the ball, a brown, round form that seemed to be mostly underground. It immediately made a hole and popped back up near her Pokemon. Strike jumped. Balthazar did not.

Perry held out her PokeDex at the new Pokemon. “Ground type?”

“Yeah, it’s supereffective against Lt. Surge’s Electric-type Pokemon! I also brought Geodude, Onix, and Growlithe.”

She frowned at him. “These are all new Pokemon, Zed. How do you know they trust you?”

“Eh, they don't need to. As long as they win this battle, I probably won’t have to use them again.”

“That’s a shame.” Everyone jumped this time at the quiet voice that interrupted. A short kid with oversized glasses and a lush Bulbasaur had sat themselves down near Perry. Embers held out his arms and gave a cheerful cry, rushing over to them. “Hello, Embers. You’ve certainly gotten bigger.”

“Morgan! How’s Bulbasaur?”

“Thanks for asking, Perry. He’s doing really well, and I think he’ll be ready to evolve soon.”

“Caught any other Pokemon yet, Morg?”

“No, Zed. Bulbasaur and I are doing just fine together.” Morgan opened their vest, and Perry caught a glimpse of two sparkling badges pinned to the inside.

“I believe it for sure.” Perry stroked Bulbasaur’s head, and he purred with contentment, stroking Perry’s head back with his vines.

“You two keep cuddling and I’ll be the first one to get a Thunder Badge!” Zed withdrew Diglett and took off running for the gym.

Morgan laughed. “Not if I get there first! Let’s go, Bulbasaur!” “Bulba!”

When Perry and her Pokemon had finally finished figuring out their strategy, they headed towards the sunset and into the gym. It was impressive, shooting arcs of electricity from the battling Pokemon and narrowly missing the crowds. She ended up being the last battle of the evening.

With Balthazar by her side, teleporting every time she took a few steps, Perry made her way onto the field.

Lt. Surge crossed his beefy arms. “Let’s make this quick, challenger. It’s dinnertime, and if you lose, you’re paying.”

The announcer blew the horn to signal the start of the battle. Surge threw out a Pokeball, and an eyeball with magnets stuck to it emerged with a high-pitched wheeze. Perry grinned. She’d taken on tons of Magnetite before and knew exactly what to do.

She sent out Embers with a flourish, and he emerged with a breath of fire. He was slow, but they had been practicing the reach of his fire breath.

“Supersonic, Magnemite!” The Magnemite let out an awful high-pitched whine that penetrated the stadium. Perry slapped a hand over her ears and flinched, but she still could hear them ringing afterwards. She hoped that Embers would still be able to hear her; he knew the attack plan but that ringing was really distracting.

He took in a big breath, puffing his cheeks, and blew out three puffs of embers. They shot at the Magnemite, but it dodged them with unpredictable movements. Perry frowned. This put a dent in their plan for sure.

The Magnemite started vibrating, charging up with a golden glow. It let out a burst of electricity that caught Embers in the arm.

“Embers, use smokescreen on the back of the stadium!”

He let out a lungful of black smoke, directing it further back. The Magnemite disappeared into the smoke, and Perry could hear Surge coughing.

“Magnemite, get out of the smoke!”

The Magnemite zipped towards Embers, emerging in clear view - right in his line of fire. Embers let out three bursts of flame, all of which hit the Magnemite. It screeched as its magnets glowed red-hot, and Surge called it back quickly into the Pokeball.

“Leader Surge’s Magnemite is unable to battle!”

“Okay, Voltorb. Take it out quick!”

Surge opened his Pokeball and sent out… a Pokeball? But no, it was larger, and as it rolled over, Perry saw its eyes squint shut.

And then it exploded.

The blast turned the stadium into a white flash and sent a wave of force flying backwards. When Perry opened her eyes, she saw the Voltorb steaming slightly, fainted. With dismay, she saw that Embers had fainted too.

“Leader Surge’s Voltorb and Trainer Perry’s Charmeleon are unable to battle! Leader Surge is down to his last Pokemon!”

It was okay. Perry had planned that something like this could happen. “Good job, Embers,” she whispered as she withdrew him into his Pokeball. She strapped it back on her belt and pulled out Strike’s. She had an idea of Surge’s last Pokemon, but the power imbalance was glaring.

She sent out Strike just as Surge threw his Pokeball, releasing exactly what she had feared: a bigger version of Pikachu, Raichu. It stretched, its tail flickering with stored electricity.

“Just like we planned! If it can’t find you, it can’t hit you.”

Strike nodded, disappearing into the lingering smoke. When she emerged on the other side, Raichu immediately sent a shock of electricity her way. The electricity went right through Strike and she faded. The decoy worked.

Other versions of Strike started emerging from the smoke, running at the Raichu and leaping over it. Raichu was whipping its head around, trying to figure out which was the real one, and slamming its tail against decoys whenever it could. Perry crossed her fingers for good luck as she saw the real Strike descending from above.

Lt. Surge locked eyes with his Raichu, and it started moving even before he yelled “Iron Tail!”

The crowd let out a collective “ohhh” as Raichu’s stiffened tail sent Strike flying across the stadium, her decoys fading. She slammed hard into the packed stadium earth, and it took all of Perry’s willpower to stop from running over.

“Strike, please, get up.”

Strike’s ears only twitched a little.

“Please. For me.”

“Well, folks,” the announcer said, “it seems Trainer Perry is out of the running. She’ll -- wait, her Pikachu is getting up! Incredible!”

Panting heavily, Strike pushed herself off the ground. She had a scrape over her eye and was hunched in a way that suggested she was in pain. They were so close, though.

“Raichu, put it out of its misery.”

Raichu started sparking from its cheeks, filling the stadium with static electricity. Perry felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise up. Raichu certainly was powerful, stretched out to its full length with tail thrashing. Perry had to think quickly.

“Strike, dodge it with Quick Attack!”

Just as the Thunder Shock came down, Strike moved in a blur. The electricity left a mark on the stadium floor. Again and again, panting heavier each time, Strike danced around the battlefield.

“You’re just delaying the inevitable,” Surge scoffed. “Raichu, get it with a Discharge.”

“Rai --”

“Strike, jump up and then come down with a Slam!”

Raichu let out a shockwave of energy that crackled out in all directions. Raichu was visibly tiring, though, and it sizzled out before it got to the audience. Strike drop-kicked the Raichu through the electric field, taking it with her down to the ground.

There was no movement as the dust settled.

And then only Strike got up.

The crowd went wild. Perry ran over to Strike, scooping her up and cradling her as she readied a Potion. Lt. Surge withdrew his Raichu, meeting Perry in the middle to shake her hand. As he handed over the Thunder Badge, he murmured to her. “A word of advice. Your Pikachu shows more discipline than 90% of the Pokemon that come in here. You have strategy and respect, but if you really want more power, you gotta evolve your Pikachu with a Thunder Stone.”

“Strike, you want to evolve and get stronger?”

She nodded with a weak smile. “Chu.”

“Thanks, sir. I’ll find a Thunder Stone as soon as I can!”

***

Later, in Celadon City, under a sky full of Dratini, Strike got her wish. With Zed’s help, Perry had found the Team Rocket base beneath the Game Corner, and the stashes of Pokemon they were hoarding to sell. The rivals had set them free, and they disappeared into the clouds.

“You’re just letting them go?” Zed asked. “I thought you wanted a Dratini more than anything.”

“I thought it would be good for my team.” Perry looked down at Balthazar, Embers, Strike, and Fury. “But my team is strong, and we trust each other, and those Dratini deserve their freedom.” She knelt down to Strike and pulled out the Thunder Stone from her bag that she hadn’t had a chance to use yet.

“Strike. You have been with me almost since the beginning and you made so many sacrifices for me. You were strong for me, and strong for others, every time I asked. But this has to be your decision. You have to want to be strong for  _ you. _ It’s your journey as much as mine.”

Strike looked directly into Perry’s eyes, and then touched her hand.  _ Together. _

And then Strike touched the Thunder Stone.


	7. New Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, moving is hard!

“Come on, Perry, it’s time for the retirement ceremony!” Todd followed the fanfare back towards the ranch, urging her forwards with him.

“Wait, retirement?”

“Yeah? Our Magikarps worked really hard. They’re only allowed to compete in one tournament, remember?”

Perry frowned, clutching her Magikarp a little tighter. She had worked so hard - they had worked so hard together - and now…

The entourage made its way to a large pond in the back of the ranch. The whole time, Perry was running scenarios through her head - she could make a break for it with Magikarp, she could paint it to look like a different one, she could hide its Pokeball…

“Thank you, Karson, for everything we did together! I’ll come back to visit you soon!” Todd gently lowered Karson into the pond, and it turned back to face him before heading to the depths of the pond. The other Friend League competitors were doing the same, some of them lying down on the edge of the pond and just hanging out with their Magikarp for a while.

Perry took a deep breath. She wasn’t ready to say goodbye. Their bond had just been forming - bonds that, in her old Pokemon, had taken years to develop. “Magikarp,” she started. Hesitated. “Thank you. You showed me that I could still trust myself with Pokemon, and I’m grateful for that.” She put Magikarp in the pond and hugged her arms to herself. “You’re not Fury. You’re my Magikarp, and you always will be.” With that, she stood up abruptly and turned away, trying to hide her tears.

Roddy came by and gave her an awkward side squeeze. “I understand if you’re not ready, but the Fast League is in the next couple of weeks and you can fish another one whenever you want.”

“I… I think I will. Thanks, Roddy. This whole thing just took me by surprise.”

He nodded sagely. “It was the same for me.” Reaching into his life jacket, he pulled out a creased picture from his wallet. In it, beardless but still wearing an embarrassing getup, child Roddy held a gaping Magikarp high in the air. “Everyone loves their first Magikarp. Don’t want to push them too hard, though, or you’re gonna end up with a Gyarados.”

Perry laughed. If you had told her a few years ago that people  _ didn’t _ want their Magikarp to evolve, she would never have believed it.

The ceremony completed, the audience and trainers began to head back to town, or wander around the other ponds. Roddy led her over to a slightly bigger pond than the beginner ones, where Todd was already eagerly hunched over a cast line. Perry grabbed her own rod, sinking into a chair beside him.

She felt a tug almost immediately.

“Got one!” the rivals said in unison, looking at each other and then back down at their lines. Todd reeled his in like a bull fight, giving and taking and full of dramatics. Perry gave a yank and then stared open-mouthed at the result.

A purple-blue dragon with white fins undulated, hovering, in the air. Its glowing eyes locked on to Perry as her mind screamed,  _ DRATINI!! _

“You’re no Magikarp!” Roddy exclaimed, waving his hands at it. “Shoo, shoo!”

“Wait --” Perry started, but the Dratini shot off into the sky. She watched it go with a bittersweet feeling. A carryover from her past life: only encountering Dragon-types she could not catch.

“Heh, sorry about that,” Roddy chuckled. “Sometimes we get those pests muddying up the ponds. They eat the wild-laid Magikarp eggs too.”

Next to her, Todd finished reeling in his catch: a Magikarp dotted with white patches. He quickly captured it in a Pokeball and then let it back out, checking its fins and mouth. “Seems healthy,” he confirmed. “I’m going to call her Callie.”

“Her?”

“Yeah, Todd caught a female,” Roddy confirmed. “You can tell by the barbels. White barbels are females, yellow are males. Same for Gyarados.”

Perry shrugged. Someone told her once that Fury was female and she had just accepted it. She was about to descend into that tumultuous train of thought when something tugged on her fishing line.

Sighing, she reeled it in, and was almost surprised to see a successful Magikarp catch. Female, and patchy orange and white, just like Todd’s. Peaches, she decided with startling speed. Her name is Peaches.

“Hey, our Magikarp have the same pattern. It’ll be neat to see if they’re still the same when they grow up!” Todd was already sketching down the pattern of his Magikarp, carefully measuring out the length of the spots with measuring tape.

Perry took Peaches over to her new pond, the one that Magikarp had until recently occupied. She was still feeling a little hurt over losing Magikarp and being forced to catch another one so quickly. She would have to start all over with training, and she knew nothing about Peaches’ personality. If it was anything like Magikarp, it would take a lot of effort.

Peaches struggled out of her grip, landing on the ground and flopping herself over to the pond. When she got in, she swam deep and out of sight. Well, so much for that one, she thought to herself. She was about to get up and leave when she saw Peaches coming back up. She had something in her mouth. Perry crouched down and extended her hand, and Peaches spat a very shiny rock into it. Peaches’ mouth opened in what Perry could only assume was a Magikarp smile.

They stayed like this for a while, Peaches exploring her pond and bringing back things she thought was interesting - mostly shiny rocks, leaves, and scales. Soon Perry had a treasure trove around her. She idly added the Light Ball, and Peaches went wild with excitement. Okay, she admitted, this could go well.

Once the sun set, Perry left a few berries in and around the pond, in places Peaches would have to work to find them, and headed to bed. Peaches didn’t seem as food motivated as Magikarp, but maybe she could invent some kind of food dispenser you had to jump to reach…

Her drifting mind bolted awake at a sound outside. She was intimately familiar with the Pokemon cry outside her window, and for a second before she remembered she thought it was Strike. But no, Strike was gone, and that meant.

“Hey, get away from her!” Perry bolted down the stairs and threw open the door, catching a couple of Pikachu fawning over the Light Ball. Electric types that hadn’t evolved yet had poor control over their power, and being that close to the pond could spell the end of Peaches. Perry picked up a large stick and beat it on the ground. The Pikachu ran a few steps away - and then slowly crept back towards Peaches’ pond.

At the sound of a snapped branch, Perry whipped around, and saw two more Pikachu approaching from the darkness. They froze when they locked eyes with her, and she advanced with her stick. They bolted, and Perry gave chase. Through the fields where she had fought the Mankey, past Hoppy Town and through the woods - Perry pushed her lungs, filled with a protective rage and grief and emotions she couldn’t explain but filled her up, up, until the Pikachu were gone.

What was in front of her was instead a small cemetery. Set apart from the rest of the graves were four with freshly turned earth.

One Pikachu reappeared, hesitating next to one of the gravestones. On it was carved the image of a Raichu and a Pokeball, and, in all caps, the name STRIKE. Sitting on the grave was a bouquet of flowers, as well as a framed picture of Perry and Strike as a Pikachu.

Perry crawled over to the grave, causing the Pikachu to scatter. So her team had been taken quietly off life support. The decision had been made without her, while she had been on a ranch pretending to be a Pokemon trainer again. She was awful. She couldn’t even be there for her own Pokemon’s funerals. Her eyes blurred as she looked down the neat row of stones, Fury’s closest to her, and whispered their names to herself. 

The Pikachu crept back towards her, and one put a hand on her thigh. She turned and looked at it dully, and it touched the picture of her and Strike.

Oh. It recognized her. And from what she knew about Pokemon empathy, it probably could understand what she was feeling, as well. She hesitantly touched the Pikachu between the ears and closed her eyes.  _ Can you ever forgive me? _

In return, the Pikachu took her hand, put it over its heart, and gave a slow nod.

“I’m sorry I chased you with a stick,” she choked through a throatful of snot. “You didn’t want to hurt Peaches, did you? You just liked the Light Ball.” 

They nodded.

“Can you help me find my way back? Thank you for showing me --” She choked down a sob. “-- this.”

With a last look at the markers, she followed the train of Pikachu back through the moonlight.


	8. The Sweetest Peaches

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter-specific cw: a single curse word

The next few days had Perry follow a strict routine: she fed Peaches in the morning, helped Roddy with the ranch chores, went for some Sandbag Slam and Jump Counter training in the afternoon, and spent time bonding with Peaches and the Pikachu in the evening. Todd’s ‘Karp, Callie, grew up a little faster, a few scales turning a glistening onyx amid the white and orange. Peaches was steadily growing ivory scales outnumbering the orange, a beautiful mottled orange and white.

“Yep, she’s about full grown,” Roddy confirmed, as Perry let Peaches out of her Pokeball in front of him. He was multitasking, wearing rubber gloves and giant metal goggles as he landscaped a baby Magikarp tank. The babies in question were piled in with their cohorts and not happy about it, snapping at each other’s yolk sacs. Perry tossed a couple of Oran berry chunks in with them to keep them happy.

In the afternoon, her and Todd took their Magikarps out back to the Friend League “stadium”, the empty field behind the ranch. They lined up against each other and stared their rivals down.

“This is what it’s gonna be like, Peaches. Me and you against some no-good smelly fish, and his Magikarp too.”

“Hey!” Todd slapped his hand to his chest, mock-offended. “Her _name_ is _Callie_.”

They practiced jumping a few times. When Peaches focused, she could beat Callie by a couple of inches. The problem was getting her to focus, attracted as she was to the world around her. After an hour of this, the rivals picked up their Magikarps and started heading back to the ranch.

“Oh hey,” Perry pointed out, following Peaches’ wandering gaze. “A Sitrus berry tree. Can Callie jump high enough to snag a berry?”

“I think she’s pretty tired, actually. Maybe we should head back.”

Perry ignored that last comment, lowering Peaches to the ground. “Okay, Peaches, go get it!”

Her jump was the best thing about the whole situation. From out of nowhere, a bird Pokemon swooped across the sky with a screech. It glided over, talons outstretched, and snatched Peaches right out of the air.

Perry’s vision tunneled into the Pigeotto, and she barely heard the whoosh of Todd withdrawing Callie before she took off running. She tripped over a couple of Pokemon in the tall grass, but pumped her legs harder as the Pigeotto ascended. She could just faintly see Peaches wriggling in its grip, mouth gaping. This wasn’t like the Pikachu. It wasn’t rage driving her. Dread was building an iron sphere in her gut and pulling her back. She was panting hard, and the Pigeotto was only flying faster.

Strong arms wrapped around her middle, and she thrashed as she watch Pigeotto soar away. But there was nowhere else to chase: the path ended abruptly at a cliff, and she could only watch, words stuck in her throat, the last she would ever see of Peaches.

Todd let go of her warily, but she did not jump off the cliff. Her legs gave out from under her and she fell heavily onto her butt, hands in her lap. The sun was going down, and it sent beautiful flares of colour in all directions. Perry stared stupidly at it. They were just training! Even in a jumping sport her Pokemon died. _I did it_ , she thought. _I’m the worst trainer._

Todd sat down beside her. For once his mouth was shut as he tentatively leaned in towards her, thought better of it, changed his mind, and pulled him towards her in a side hug. The gesture was enough to send tears streaming down her cheeks, but she turned her head away so he wouldn’t see.

They sat like that for a while, until Todd spoke suddenly. “It happens, you know.” When Perry said nothing, he continued. “It happens, especially when trainers take risks. Losing Pokemon, losing contests -- losing Gym battles -- it’s a part of learning and growing stronger. Your responsibility is to learn what it teaches you. Believe me, I know, it’s shitty, but you need to honour Peaches by learning from the experience she gave you.”

Perry couldn’t look him in the eye, but saw that his fist was curled. For the first time, she wondered why Todd, well past the age of a Pokemon journey, had started Magikarp jumping at the same time as her. She put a hand over his fist, and he relaxed it.

Peaches taught her kindness. Peaches taught her patience. Peaches taught her choice. That was the cost of her sacrifice, and it was Perry’s job to remember those lessons.


	9. Hoppy Town

Peaches taught her to keep going.

The next day, she arranged Peaches’ pebbles in a kind of mosaic around the pond, making her best representation that she could of a Magikarp. She planted a few new hiding places, put in an unused Sunflora decoration found in Roddy’s tool shed, and spruced it up a little. The Quick League tournament was in less than a week and Perry was not above using bribery on the new Pokemon.

The Magikarp in the stock pond didn’t want to seem to bite that day, and Perry struggled to push down her impatience as she wiggled the Caterpie lure on the end of the rod. Finally, she got a bite, and resisted the urge to yank it straight up. She reeled it in slowly, and was rewarded with a Magikarp, slightly bigger than she was used to, whose scales glittered in the sunlight.

“That’s a nice one,” Roddy commented. “Got some gold scales too. Todd’ll be jealous.” He grinned.

She decided to call the Magikarp - male, she remembered, from the white whiskers - Mango, and brought him over to his new pond. When she lowered him in, he swam around the hides, exploring, and gave a joyful glub. Okay, going well so far. Perry took a bunch of Sitrus berries from her pocket and tossed them in. Mango mouthed one gently and then darted back under cover of the plants, leaving the berry floating on the surface.

Okay. Her Magikarp was afraid of berries. Not great.

Perry held out her hand in the water, letting Mango swim up and nudge against her fingers, and trying not to pull away when he nibbled them a little. She took a Sitrus berry in her hand and dipped it back in, releasing it when Mango went for her fingers again. He bit into the berry and spit it out.

Maybe an Oran berry? They wouldn’t make him grow as fast but it was better than nothing. He mouthed it and swallowed it, and then his bug-eyed stare became even more so. He shot the berry out of the water, where it ricocheted off the shore and hit Perry in the nose.

“Too bad there’s not a spitting competition,” she said grumpily, and then headed off to see her cousin.

At first, she couldn’t find him. The ponds were quiet and still, except for a Magikarp cruising the surface, and the house was empty except for the burble of water cyclers in the fry tanks. The tank in her room had been commandeered for growing plants but was otherwise empty. And then something weird brushed against Perry’s memory and she went back outside.

Magikarp wouldn’t usually be on the surface, right? She took a closer look, peering intently into the eyes, and tugged on its upper fin. She shrieked as something huge and blue rose from the water, dripping and covered in seaweed. Its head looked like a Magikarp, but its body --

Was Roddy in a wetsuit?

“What the hell!”

“Shhh, you’ll scare ‘em off,” Roddy’s fish-head said. He pointed in the water, and she saw a few various-coloured Magikarp, barely hatched from the egg, dart into the hidden crevasses. “They’re part of the rehabilitation program. We don’t want them to learn that food comes from humans.”

“Oh. I -- uh. Sorry. Um, I was wondering, do we have any berries other than Oran and Sitrus here?”

Roddy reached up under his fish and scratched his head with a gloved hand. “Hm. There are some wild patches of medicinal berries around, but the ‘Karp don’t really like ‘em. If you want a real variety you’re gonna have to go to Hoppy Town and check out the berry shop.”

So Perry started out across the fields towards the town of patchwork roofs in the distance. As she got closer, she saw it was a little village, really, tucked into a valley. Cobbles wound their way through houses and a few bigger buildings, and what appeared to be a lab. The houses were painted a rainbow of mismatched hues that suggested no one had collaborated on a colour scheme with their neighbours. Walking into town, it seemed lively, with many people out sitting in the sunshine. There were many ponds and parks around, where Perry could see people playing with their Pokemon: Magikarp, for sure, but also an Eevee, chirping eagerly at its teammate. A Popplio and a Magikarp dived down into a pond together, and came back up holding a treasure chest between them. A Snorlax shook a tall berry tree, raining food into both its mouth and a Magikarp pond. There was even a Charizard, Perry noticed sadly, flying high with a trainer on its back. It reminded her comfortably of the other towns she had visited on her travels, just… fishier.

On the main thoroughfare, there were a few shops: some sold fishing supplies, others had shining decorations in their windows, and there was a building resembling a lab like Professor Oak’s. Perry found the shop with a hanging sign featuring a Pecha berry and was about to head in when she was interrupted.

“Hey, you! Boy? Uh, girl?” he amended, when she turned around.

It was a mysterious man who, in all honesty, looked like Roddy after a bad night out. He wore a button-down red shirt with a Pokeball pattern - hadn’t Mayor Karp been wearing that? Was there a single clothes store in Hoppy Town that only sold one shirt? He was in dire need of a haircut and could use a shave. His sandals slapped loudly on the sidewalk as he approached.

“I saw you in the Friend League! You’re working hard raising that Magikarp of yours, aren’t you?” He continued without a pause: “I’ve got a nugget of wisdom to share with you, then! Or, well, it’s a nugget, anyway.”

He thrust a gold-coloured object into her hands and she dropped it in surprise before bending to pick it up. When she stood upright, he was gone.

“What…?”

That was not the strangest thing Hoppy Town had to offer. Heading into the shop, Perry had to squint at the sudden darkness. As her eyes adjusted, they made out a figure directly in front of her.

“Hello!” it said, as Perry let out a muffled shout. It was a woman crouching down to her height, with giant round glasses perching on her nose. Her hair was a tangle of curls cascading from five clashing patterned shawls, with jewelry peeking from her throat and wrists.

The shop itself seemed to match her vibe, with wares haphazardly stacked around. Most of the things in the store were gardening tools and seeds, but there were grocery store-style baskets of berries dominating the center of the shop. She wanted to go over there to browse in peace, but the enthused shopkeeper was blocking her way.

“Uh, hi. I’m looking for some berries for my Magikarp?”

“Certainly! What is your Magikarp’s nature?” The shopkeeper noticed her hesitation. “You don’t know its nature? Preposterous! Ah, well, I suppose we can do this the long way. Is it Naughty? Lonely? Adamant? Or perhaps Quiet? Sassy?”

“Um, he doesn’t like hanging out with me very much? So I’m hoping to get some berries he likes.”

The shopkeeper threw her hands up in the air. “Trainers these days, waltzing in without doing any of the research beforehand. If it doesn’t like people, perhaps it’s Timid. Let’s try some sweet berries.” She rummaged through her berry baskets. “Pecha and Waccan should be good to start. And next time, find out your Pokemon’s nature or I’m charging extra for divining services.”

Perry bought a whole bunch. Time was running out until the tournament and they would have to work extra hard - and a little food motivation couldn’t hurt.


	10. Dwebble Push

Training was frustrating. For the next few days, even though Mango was bulking out on the new berries (immediately submitting to the bribe) and giving his all during training, he didn’t seem to be improving fast enough. Training with Todd, Callie jumped higher every time. It seemed Mango got frustrated easily if things didn’t go fast enough, and would end up sulking.

“Come on, Mango! Pikachu, Quick Attack!”

The heart-tailed Pikachu complied, and Mango hopped out of the way before the move could land its mark. On the second attack, it was a direct hit, and Mango fainted.

Sighing, Perry withdrew Mango into his Pokeball and gave the Pikachu a little pat on the head. It ran into the forest, the other Pikachu following behind.

When Perry made it back to the ranch, she found Mayor Karp in an intense conversation with Roddy. The two were talking in low voices and seemed to be arguing. As she approached, the back of her neck tingled as she caught her name being passed back and forth.

“Oh hey, Mayor Karp!” she announced loudly, making both the mayor and Roddy jump.

“Perry!” Both had smiles pasted on their faces and were looking at her with suspiciously eager eyes. “What can I do for you, my girl?”

She held up the Pokeball. “Mango fainted. Do we have a PokeCentre nearby?”

Roddy shot a look at the Mayor, but he ignored it. “Even better, you have me! I give excellent Magikarp massages that’ll get your Magikarp good as new. And how is the training going? You’ll be ready for the Quick League, I hope?”

“It’s… okay. I think we need something a little more challenging than Sandbag Slam and Jump Counter though.”

Mayor Karp looked pensive. Mango emerged from the Pokeball to the gentle touch of Mayor Karp’s roaming hands. Perry was a little disturbed by the flesh being rolled like dough, and even more so by the fact that Mango seemed to like it. Within a minute, he seemed ready to go for more training.

“There’s some Dwebble in the forest nearby, and some of the trainers try pushing them to build up they’re Magikarps’ strength…”

“Absolutely not,” Roddy interrupted with surprising force. “It’s -- there’s things in the forest --”

“It’s okay. I know about the cemetery.”

Roddy tensed, and then seemed to soften a bit. He gave her an awkward quick hug and held her shoulders at arm’s length to look her in the eye. “Your mom suggested you come here to distract from the -- the tournament. But you need to feel those feelings, ya know? So I just -- I’m here for you, okay? Whenever, wherever.”

Perry blinked rapidly and squeezed Roddy’s arm, and he gave her a couple of quick pats on the shoulder before nodding. Perry nodded back.

“So where exactly are these Dwebble?”

An hour later, Perry had found the location eagerly described to her by Mayor Karp, but not the Dwebble in question. It was a beautiful forest, really, the slanted sunlight breaking through the trees. A stream burbled nearby, just deep enough for Mango to splash in, surrounded by mossy rocks. There were no signs of any Pokemon whatsoever.

“Dwebble like rocks, right, Mango?”

He burbled in agreement.

“So we can check… underneath? Gotcha!” As Perry lifted the rock, a tiny orange Pokemon looked up at her fearfully with large eyes on stalks. It started whimpering. “Oh, hey no, don’t --”

It screamed.

The forest screamed back.

In a single motion, all of those mossy rocks shot into the air, supported by the Dwebble they housed. Pebbles started flying in Perry’s direction, and she started smacking them out of the air. The Rock Throws were manageable until one Dwebble used Smack Down.

Ducking out of the way, Perry yelled, “Time to go, Mango!” The large boulder sailed past her, crashing into a mound of layered strata, and she hopped up onto it as her escape route. This was a huge mistake: as the layers shifted around her and claws sprouted from underneath, she realized it was a Crustle. And it did not appreciate the bombardment.

The Crustle reared in the air and screamed, and was echoed by the higher-pitched battle cries of the Dwebble. They converged on her and she bolted alongside the stream, Mango keeping pace. Every time she thought they might be falling behind, new ones emerged with a spray of soil to launch attacks. She leapt over rocks as Mango dodged around attacks, and tried to ignore the spray of mud and pebbles hitting her in the back. Risking a look behind her, she saw they were right on her tail.

And that’s when the escape route ended.

Perry’s feet slipped on the last of the rocks and she felt her balance shift. The rumbling of the pursuing Pokemon had covered up the sound of the stream falling off the earth… or at least becoming a waterfall. Far down below, Perry saw where she would land in a literally crushing defeat.

She locked eyes with Mango, who was swimming desperately away from the waterfall while dodging attacks. She didn’t have the breath to say goodbye to him, since she was using it all to scream. But she hoped that a life in the wild would be better than being in a Pokeball as it smashed to smithereens.

Mango saw her falling through the air, and did something amazing.

He let out a cry, beat his fins on the water, and rushed off the edge of the cliff. With a mighty jump, he knocked into Perry, taking the wind out of her but pushing her trajectory. The two fell, clinging to each other desperately, and plunged with the rest of the river into the deep pool below.

Perry could only see blue, the sunlight sparkling on the water far above, and distantly feel the shock of cold water to her system. She floated, helpless, until Mango nudged her head above the surface and she coughed the water out of her lungs. He swam under her arm and dragged her to shore, gently depositing her on the sand as she wiped soaked hair out of her face.

“Good jump,” she croaked out.

This was not a timid Magikarp, she decided, laying on her back with her hand stroking Mango’s fins. This was her hero.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Mango is Hasty)


	11. The Quick League, Part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter-specific CW: a single curse word

“I don’t think you should compete today.”

It came out of nowhere, as Perry was helping Roddy toss Oran chunks to the fry. She stopped what she was doing and stared at him, mouth agape.

“I told you, Roddy, I’m fine. I would’ve been a lot worse off without Mango.”

“No, it’s not that.” He sighed and put down the bucket. “Mayor Karp thinks you’re a rising star here and I think he’s pushing you too hard. You had so many losses - your Pokemon, Peaches --” Perry flinched. “I think it’s a bad idea and you should wait a while longer, get more confident with Mango.”

“So the two of you were talking about me behind my back.”

“No - well, yes, but -- Listen, I just want what’s best for you.”

“You think I can’t look out for myself? Just because I fuck up a couple of times while I’m still learning?”

“The problem  _ is  _ that you’re still learning!” The fry ducked into their hiding places at Roddy’s sudden roar, and he breathed heavily a few times before squeezing his eyes shut. “Sorry. There’s going to be a competitor there who I just think --”

“Maybe you should stick to what you’re good at instead of thinking,” Perry replied coldly, setting the bucket down and heading out to Mango’s pond. She could feel Roddy’s eyes on her back and knew her mom would get a phone call. She was almost an adult, she’d been on a whole Pokemon journey, and she could make her own decisions.

Withdrawing Mango into his Pokeball, she headed towards the field a little early. To her surprise, Todd was also there, giving Callie some last-minute instructions. He held her up to his face to look her in the eye, and then grinned when he saw Perry.

“Hey, rival! Ready for the big match?” He set Callie down and jostled Perry in the shoulder playfully.

“Yeah, sure,” she replied sourly.

“Good, because this one’s a little different. There’s a preliminary round first, and then the elimination round is based off those results… Everything okay?”

She hesitated, and then shook her head. “Yeah, I’m fine. Let’s do this.”

They headed across the field, down near the pebbly beach where Magikarp-shaped banners snapped in the wind. The path down to the shore was somewhat steep, and Pokemon chittered from the grass at either side. Some spectator benches had been set up, toddlers were restricted to these areas, and arenas had been drawn in the sand with a big stick. It was, in short, much more formal than the Friend League tournament.

Some of the other competitors had already arrived, their Magikarp dipping into the water and warming up. Most of the ones she saw were young teens, and indeed the audience was filled with parents. A couple of older folks were milling around with their hands clasped behind their backs, the breeze picking through their wispy hair.

And then there was  _ her. _ She was about Perry’s age, maybe a little bit older, and held herself with a confidence that rattled Perry’s nerves. She was tall and a little heavyset, one side of her head shaved and the other featuring thick purple curls that cascaded to shoulder-length. She had six Pokeballs looped to her belt, which held up jean shorts and a floral crop top that hung loosely to just above her navel. One of her ears was pierced, according to Perry’s rapid count, five times, and studded with a rainbow of jewels.

“Perry, your mouth is open,” Todd whispered to her out the side of his mouth.

She closed it. “Who is that?” she whispered back.

He gave the competitor an up-and-down glance, shrugged, and released Callie into the water.

“She’s… familiar.” At this point Perry realized she was talking to herself, blinked hard, and started to get Mango prepared.

The festivities started soon, with Flop Hoppington - in a stunning purple suit with sparkling silver shoes, the sunglasses on his face the only suitable beach garment he wore - announcing the start of the event with a flourish. He got the competitors lined up with their Magikarp, and started rattling off a list of rapid-fire names. Perry winced as she heard her full name Peregrine, but wasn’t able to catch  _ her _ name.

With the competitors divided for the preliminaries and a chalkboard keeping track of score, the jumps started. Perry tried to watch her competitors and their strategies, but her eyes kept sliding to  _ her _ . Her determined eyes and strong stance as she whipped her Magikarp’s Pokeball through the air… It was all nagglingly familiar, but Perry couldn’t place her.

She jumped as her name was called and grabbed Mango, heading over to the arena. Her competitor was a boy, lanky in a way typical of 13-year-olds who don’t know where their limbs are yet. He set down his Magikarp with extraordinary gentleness, and immediately tripped over his feet backing up.

“All -- alright, Maggie, let’s show them how it’s done!” His voice cracked a little as he gave a shy grin, and yelled out, “Jump!”

“You too, Mango! Use your speed!”

The two Magikarp launched themselves into the air. Maggie put up a good fight, trying to flap her fins to make her go higher, but Mango quickly evaded the flaps and sent her sideways. With an extra flourish, he landed in the sand beside her.

“Perry and Mango are the winners of this round! Mikey, please wait to the side for your next competitor. Now for our next match: Perry, having just defeated her opponent smoothly, versus the stunning and stylish Kate!”

Perry gasped.

_ “Our next competitor, from the Kanto region, is Kate Skye. Kate has been on her journey for four years and is fearsomely strong with her ace, Wigglytuff.” _

“You… were in the Pokemon League tournament, right?”

Kate looked annoyed. “Yeah, but you lost too. And at least I beat my rival.”

That was a blow. Perry vaguely remembered her losing to Zed in the League, but as confirmed by a glance at her belt, she still had all her Pokemon. Perry’s heart throbbed a little and she blinked hard to clear her eyes.

“We gonna jump these fish or not?” Perry stuttered as a comeback.

Kate shrugged. “Mmkay. Koichiro, do your thang.” She sent out a Skelly-patterned Magikarp that managed to look both beautiful and intimidating.

Biting her lips, Perry gave the order. “Mango, jump!”

It was over, brutally, in seconds. Koichiro jumped a little sooner than Mango, and slapped him hard with her tail. He rocketed into the sand like a meteorite, and Koichiro landed gracefully in Kate’s arms. The crowd went wild.

“What an end to the preliminaries! We’ll have a short break, folks, and then we’ll return with the elimination round. This has been your favourite, Flop Hoppington!”


	12. The Quick League, Part 2

“Who does she think she is, anyway?” Perry seethed around an egg salad sandwich. She was sitting on a picnic blanket with Todd, Callie, and Perry’s temper.

“You said she was a League competitor? That explains a lot.”

“Hey!  _ I  _ was a League competitor!”

Todd held up his hands in self-defence. “Just saying.”

“She struts in like she owns the place, with her - her hair, and her earrings, and her  _ special wittle karpy. _ I’ve never even seen her around town before! I bet she just took this up as a hobby because she’s tired of being perfect.”

_ “The elimination round is about to begin! Competitors, please report to the stadium in one minute!” _

As she seethed, Todd patted her on the shoulder. “Do you have a strategy to beat her?”

“Yeah, I’ll just… point out her smudged makeup or something.” She sighed heavily, wrapping up her sandwich and releasing Mango from his Pokeball. He was a little cross-eyed still, but Perry wasn’t sure if that was anything unusual. The Nurse Joy on site had deemed him fine to continue the competition, though. She just hoped his pride wasn’t hurt.

Returning to the sand pit, the chalkboard had been wiped and redrawn with each of the competitors’ names matched with an opponent. Scanning quickly, Perry found hers; her competitor was apparently a Harriet and her Magikarp Koylee. Perry guessed it was one of the younger kids. Kate’s name was nowhere near hers, and she secretly hoped Todd would take her out before she had to again.

The Magikarp jumping was reaching impressive heights, literally: the fish were sailing high into the air, reaching 20 metres. Perry scanned for Pigeotto, but the worst she could find were a few out-of-place Wingull. Still, it made her nervous, and she clutched Mango’s Pokeball a  little tighter.

Finally, her name was called. Perry stalked toward the arena, trying to release a little of the pent-up nervous energy coursing through her, and eyed her opponent. Not a kid, not even a teenager: Harriet was a stooped little grandma, her grey hair in a neat bun and glasses held onto her face with beaded strings. Her Magikarp was a dappled orange and white and was trying to be… intimidating? As much as it could be, anyway.

“Ah, my opponent is here at last,” Harriet croaked. “Would you like some advice from a veteran Magikarp raiser?”

“No, I --”

Harriet pointed her walking stick at Perry. “You must trust in yourself as much as you trust your Magikarp.” She peered at Perry. “Or perhaps you have the opposite problem. Hard to tell. My eyesight is fading a little with time. Koylee, take them out!”

The opponent Magikarp sprang into action, but Mango was hot on its tail. The two Magikarp strained up high, and Perry squinted into the sun to try to see the results. She could dimly hear Flop in the background, and the crowd (if it could be called a crowd) cheering them on. Finally, the Magikarp reappeared, Mango hitting her a little on the way down.

“And the winner is… Mango!”

Harriet hobbled over to shake her hand. “I’ve got it,” she whispered to Perry. “You must trust yourself as much as your Magikarp trusts you.”

What? Crazy old woman.

Todd and Kate were just finishing up their jump in the next arena. Perry glanced at the chalkboard. It looked like she would face whoever won this jump.

Just like before, Koichiro brutally smacked Callie into the sand. Todd went running and scooped her up, whispering reassuring things to her and stroking her down her scales. Perry’s stomach plummeted.

Kate made eye contact with her. Perry snorted and looked away.

“Mango, you can do this, okay? Trust me.”

“That’s not the problem,” Harriet whispered from behind her. Perry jumped.

“Okay. Whatever. Let’s just --” She set Mango down where Callie had been moments ago.

“Hm. You again.” Kate smirked. “Back to lose again?”

“Just like you lost the League challenge,” Perry snarled back.

Kate’s mouth turned to an O of surprise, and then her face hardened. “I seem to recall none of  _ my  _ Pokemon died.”

A stab to Perry’s heart.

“You couldn’t even stop after you lost the first one, could you? Your pride was more important than that snivelling rat of a Raichu --”

“Pika!!”

From the top of the dunes, a Pikachu appeared. It had the heart tail and the grizzled whiskers that Perry recognized from that night at the cemetery, but it was sparking with anger. With a “Chuuu!”, it let loose a wave of electricity.

The electricity made a direct hit on Mango.

“This is Flop Hoppington, reporting to you live! One of the Magikarp has just been zapped by a wild Pikachu! Will this bring down the competition?”

No, Perry thought. She recognized that. Strike knew that move.

“Mango, now’s our chance! Use Tackle!”

As Mango and Koichiro leapt into the air, sparks crackled off of Mango’s golden scales. Koichiro, like before, altered its trajectory to fly straight into Mango; but this time, he met it head-on, and the electricity sizzled against Koichiro. With a grunt, it fell heavily into the sand, muscles twitching. Mango landed slightly more gracefully, and looked back at her with what she could only assume was a grin.

“What the hell was that?” Kate hissed between her teeth. She quickly withdrew a Paralyze Heal from her bag and sprayed it on Koichiro, who gratefully fell still. She whipped up towards Flop perched on his lifeguard stool. “That’s against the rules!”

Visibly sweating, he rifled through a thick book. “Er, since the interference wasn’t on your Magikarp, if your opponent doesn’t want to call a rematch…”

“I’m good.”

“Then… I have to say it stands! Perry is the winner of this match!”

Perry heard the roaring distantly, but she only had eyes for the Pikachu. It was starting to fade back into the forest, and she walked towards it quickly.

“Wait,” she called out gently, and it paused, ear twitching, back to her. “Strike knew that move. Pikachu aren’t supposed to know that move. She learned it from you, didn’t she?”

The Pikachu’s shoulders slumped, and it turned to look at her with large, sad eyes.

“Because you were her mother.”

On a beach in the Kanto region, a celebration was underway. Todd threw Mango into the air with glee, and then into the water to splash around with Callie. Flop signed autographs and took selfies with swooning moms. Even a sulking girl with purple curls praised her Magikarp for trying its best.

In the nearby forest, a Pikachu and a trainer sat side by side, looking out at the water below, sharing the memories of a Pokemon they both loved.


	13. Embers (Trust)

In a small town in Kanto, years before two rival teenagers would show down against each other in the Pokemon League finals, three kids bounced around a tired professor. Each year it was the same: Professor Oak handed out specially trained starter Pokemon to the town’s ten-year-olds for an adventure, and most of them would come back to town with a badge or two some months later. These three had been pestering him for months about how the starters’ training was coming, or what species was going to be available; despite their eagerness, he wasn’t going to get his hopes up.

When he let the three Pokemon out of their balls, he couldn’t help but grin a little at their squeals.

“I choose Charmander!” Perry belted out immediately, running for its ball. Charmander balked a little at the onrush and flared its tail, which narrowly missed the young trainer’s hand. “Whoa, hey there!”

Oak winced as Perry grabbed the Charmander under the armpits, lifting it up and spinning it around. It was in obvious discomfort, and after being singed himself Oak knew this particular Charmander’s unrestrained power. He patted Perry on the arm with a halting, “Why not give him some time to get to know you?”

“Everyone knows Charizard is the strongest! I’m going to have the strongest Pokemon!” Perry’s excited yapping continued as she set Charmander on the ground, its eyes warily focused on her. Without pausing for breath, she stuck her hand under its face, and it sniffed her, huffing out a little smoke into her palm. “I’m gonna call you Embers and you are going to be mine and we’re gonna be soooo good together! Just trust me on this one.”

If Perry reminded him of Red, Zed certainly reminded him of Blue. The lanky kid with floppy dark hair had a quiet intensity about him, but at the moment he was going for the Squirtle with a one-track mind. “Maybe you’re gonna get strong Pokemon but I’m going to catch ‘em all! I’m gonna take this one, then, so I can beat you!” He stuck out his tongue at Perry.

“Oh yeah?! You think you’re so tough?! Let’s have a battle then!” As the two jumped into a frenzy, hyping up their skeptical partners by yelling out moves as loud as they could, Oak could only usher them out of his lab before they broke something.

“Now what about… eh?” Oak still held the third Pokeball, but the Bulbasaur was no longer in front of his lab bench. He scanned quickly, and found it with Morgan - the third starting trainer, gentle and pensive. They sat cross-legged on the floor, and Bulbasaur had come to them. It timidly reached out its vines, and Morgan was still as Bulbasaur poked tenderly at their face and hands. The vines settled in Morgan’s hands and Bulbasaur approached, climbing neatly into Morgan’s lap.

Oak crouched down to their level. “It seems like Bulbasaur actually chose you! The two of you are going to have a lasting relationship.”

They looked up at Oak with a small smile. “I just want a Pokemon that I can have a bond with. We don’t need to win every time. Right, Bulbasaur?”

Outside, the battle was reaching a crescendo. Charmander was gritting its teeth, puffs of smoke pushing through them with each pant. Squirtle was similarly looking worn out, bracing itself against the ground.

“Embers.” Perry’s voice was a little hoarse from all the shouting, and the quiet tone pulled in the Charmander’s attention. It turned its head, keeping on eye on the Squirtle and ready to attack. “We can win this, you just need to trust me. Okay? Scratch!”

Embers charged forwards, catching Squirtle off guard, and delivered a critical blow. The Squirtle toppled backwards, fainted, and Zed withdrew it into the Pokeball.

“When I get more Pokemon, I’m definitely gonna beat you!”

“We’ll see about that. We’re just gonna keep getting stronger, right, Embers?”

Embers considered, and gave a tight nod. Before long, the two were racing each other towards the closest route, Morgan having already patiently walked there, and the three set off on their adventure.

*

Years later, in a roaring stadium filled with fans and trainers alike, two rivals stood across from each other in the arena. It had been tough to get here: the gym requirements, the physical terrain of Victory Road, and the loss they had suffered had taken down many lesser trainers. Now the only barrier to victory was each other. They met at the middle of the arena.

“As we promised,” Zed said somberly, offering his hand out. “The best way to honour them is to do our best.”

Perry nodded, offering a firm grasp in return. “Let’s make this a good, clean battle.” The two walked back to their sides of the arena, Zed evaluating his Pokemon. Their eyes were all focused on him, except Alakazam, who gazed intently across the field.

“Embers?” The Charizard at the girl’s side, scarred from its battles through the years, reacted instantly to her voice. He dipped his long neck down and she put her hand on it without hesitation, drawing her hand easily over the dips and ruts in his scales. “I trust you more than anything. We can do this, together.”

“Zarrrrd,” Embers drawled out in a purr, his eyes closed. He bumped foreheads with his trainer, his best friend, and flew out onto the field as the buzzer sounded.


End file.
